Are Your Children Risking Their Health With Genetically Engineered Foods?

August 22, 2007
|
4,904
views

Children face the greatest risk from the potential dangers of GM foods because:

Now for the first time, this Jeffrey Smith video "Hidden Dangers in Kids‘ Meals: Genetically Engineered Foods" is available online. This video is part of The GMO Trilogy, available at www.seedsofdeception.com.

As children head back to school, it is important for parents and grandparents to become students of what children are eating, and how that impacts their learning and their lives - because they are at greater risk from GM foods than adults.

Young, Fast-Developing Bodies Impacted Most

Children‘s bodies develop rapidly and are more likely to be influenced and impacted by genetically modified (GM) foods. That is why independent scientists used young adolescent rats in their GM feeding studies.

The rats showed significant health damage after only 10 days, including damaged immune systems and digestive function, smaller brains, livers, and testicles, partial atrophy of the liver, and potentially pre-cancerous cell growth in the intestines.

Infants below two years old are at greatest risk. They have the highest incidence of reactions, especially to new allergens encountered in the diet. Even tiny amounts of allergens can sometimes cause reactions in children.

*** fed infants may be exposed via the mother‘s diet. Fetuses may potentially be exposed in the womb. Michael Meacher, the former Minister of the Environment for the UK, said, "Any baby food containing GM products could lead to a dramatic rise in allergies."

GM corn is particularly problematic for children because they generally eat a higher percentage of corn in their diet. Further, allergic children often rely on corn protein. Mothers using cornstarch as a talc substitute on their children‘s skin might also inadvertently expose them via inhalation.

The Problem With Milk

Milk and dairy products from cows treated with the genetically engineered bovine growth hormone (rbGH) contain an increased amount of the hormone IGF-1 -- one of the highest risk factors associated with *** and prostate cancer.

The Council on Scientific Affairs of the American Medical Association called for more studies to determine if ingesting "higher than normal concentrations of [IGF-1] is safe for children, adolescents, and adults."

Sam Epstein, M.D., Chairman of the Cancer Prevention Coalition and author of eight books, wrote, "rbGH and its digested products could be absorbed from milk into blood, particularly in infants, and produce hormonal and allergic effects."

He described how "cell-stimulating growth factors ... could induce premature growth and *** stimulation in infants, and possibly promote *** cancer in adults."

Dr. Epstein pointed out that the hormones in cows could promote the production of "steroids and adrenaline-type stressor chemicals ... likely to contaminate milk and may be harmful, particularly to infants and young children."

A 2002 report by the UK‘s Royal Society said that genetic modification "could lead to unpredicted harmful changes in the nutritional state of foods." They therefore recommended that potential health effects of GM foods be rigorously researched before being fed to pregnant or ***-feeding women, elderly people, those suffering from chronic disease, and babies.

Likewise, according to former minister Meacher, unexpected changes in estrogen levels in GM soy used in infant formula "might affect sexual development in children," and that "even small nutritional changes could cause bowel obstruction."

Children‘s Higher Risks Of Antibiotic Resistant Diseases

Children prone to ear and other infections are at risk of facing antibiotic resistant strains of bacteria, due to the use of antibiotic resistant genes in GM food. The British Medical Association cited this as one reason why they called for a moratorium of GM foods.

How Involved Are You In Your Child‘s Health?

The new school year is beginning. Do you know what your child is eating at school? Or even at home before and after school?

Jeffrey Smith is the author ofSeeds of Deception, the world‘s bestselling book on GMOs. He is the founder and executive director of The Institute for Responsible Technology (IRT) and a leading spokesperson on the risks of GM foods.

His newest book, Genetic Roulette, documents more than 60 health risks of GM foods in easy-to-read two-page spreads, and demonstrates how current safety assessments are not competent to protect consumers from the dangers.

He is the Executive Director of the Institute for Responsible Technology, which is spearheading the Campaign for Healthier Eating in America. For your convenience, download this Non-GMO Shopping Guide to learn more about how to avoid GM foods.